Bunnies auctioned to aid needy

By Elise Franco

Two Austintown girls auction rare Webkinz bunnies to raise money for Second Harvest Food Bank.

AUSTINTOWN — As soon as Nicole Sherb saw a news clip of citizens in line at Second Harvest Food Bank, she knew she wanted to get involved.

The 10-year-old said her first thought was, “If I could raise money, they could get more food.”

The next thing she did was go to her mother, Valerie Sherb, and tell her she wanted to do something to help out those in need.

Nicole said she and her best friend, Malyn Billet, 10, of Austintown, decided to auction off their Webkinz Sherbet bunnies, which are interactive stuffed animals that retail for about $12.

“The bunnies are rare,” she said. “They don’t make them any more, but you can register them online and play with them.”

Nicole said their hope going into the auction was to raise $100 per Webkinz toy.

“When Nicole told me she was going to do it I wanted to help,” Malyn said. “So I said I would do it, too.”

She said she was able to find out through Second Harvest that for every dollar that is donated, the food bank is able to buy $15 worth of food.

“We talked to Becky [Miller] at Second Harvest, and they were very appreciative and thankful,” Valerie said. “We are going to drop the check off on Tuesday.”

Valerie said she couldn’t be any prouder of her daughter and Malyn.

“She’s been wanting to do something like this for a while,” she said. “This was one thing I knew I could help her with, and it was for a good cause.”

The eBay auction began Nov. 8 and closed at 10 p.m. and drew $109.55. “The girls are ecstatic,” Valerie said.

Beginning at 8 p.m. Saturday, a third Webkinz bunny was posted for auction. Bidding for that bunny will close Saturday. To place a bid visit http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170279524994

The pair also plans to donate more than 30 new Webkinz toys to Beatitude House.

Malyn said she feels good about giving to children who may need the toys more than she does.

“We’re giving them away because we would just put them in a closet and do nothing with them,” she said.

Both girls said they’ve never done any type of community service like this before, but after the experience they both plan to find more ways to contribute.

“I just want the world to be a better place,” Malyn said.